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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bore · chest · bound · present · cue · field · leaves · mine

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. bore — to tire
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. present — a gift
  8. mine — for digging
  9. cue — a hint
  10. field — for sport
  11. field — farmland
  12. bore — to drill
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. bound — obliged
  15. cue — a signal
  16. present — there
  17. cue — for pool
  18. present — the time now
  19. chest — a box
  20. bound — tied together
  21. field — a subject
  22. bound — certain
  23. chest — of your body
  24. leaves — of a tree

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com